IRON FLY COMPETITION
Author: flyfishguy56
San Saba River Trip
Paul Robertson, Tom Strawther, Kevin Hutchison and I made a trip to Mason County to fish the San Saba River. We were on a private ranch and had access to more than a mile of private water. Unfortunately, the river was low and off color. Fishing was very slow with only a few fish caught. The weather was also a factor. The forecast looked great. But it hit 97 the first day and 95 on day 2. The wind spiked on day 2 blowing a steady 18-20 and gusting higher starting midday. The wind laid down at night and the temp came down. We decided to call the trip a day early due to forecast winds stronger than day 2 and challenging fishing.
Reel Recovery Retreat–Navasota, TX
Reel Recovery held a retreat for 11 men at Camp Allen near Navasota, Texas on October 15-17. Camp Allen has a conference center set on a 50+ acre lake. Over the course of the weekend, the men engage in Courageous Conversations about living with their cancer and they fly fish. Many have never fly fished before and they receive personal instruction and guiding from a Fishing Buddy. The weather cooled off and was beautiful for the weekend. The fishing was great and the catching was good. The men participating left with new friends and new skills.
A number of club members put on the retreat including, Tom Strawther, Drew Cox, Paul Robertson, Steve Tomlinson, Paul Acksyn, and Steve Edwards. We all left feeling blessed for the experience.
The next Texas retreats will be in spring 2022. Reel Recovery is always looking for participants. The retreats are free to the participants. We are also looking for volunteers to help put on the retreats especially for Fishing Buddys. If interested, please let any of us know and we will be glad to help.
Reel Recovery Retreat–Waring, TX
Reel Recovery is an organization that provides fly fishing retreats for men living with cancer. In a normal year, Texas hosts six retreats, three in the spring and three in the fall. Due to the Covid pandemic, all retreats in 2020 and spring 2021 were canceled.
With the addition of Covid protection protocols, Reel Recovery held its first retreat in Texas in more than 18 months at Camp Capers in Waring, Texas September 17-19. Typically, retreats host 10 to 15 men. Because of a variety of factors including last minute cases of Covid, we hosted 7 men. Camp Capers is on the Guadalupe River west of Borne near Comfort, Texas. The weather cooperated, the Guadalupe River fished well and the men had a rewarding weekend. Camaraderie develops between the men because of their shared experiences with cancer and fly fishing.
Several club members participated in putting on the retreat. These retreats are just as rewarding for those of us working at the retreat as the actual participants.
LoCo Trash Bash
All Water Guides is sponsoring a clean up of the lower Colorado River on November 13. For those who have fished the Colorado below Austin, it is beautiful and a great fishery. The details for the clean up and how to volunteer are here.
Oktoberfisch 2020
This past weekend was the first Oktoberfisch in Fredericksburg. The weather was beautiful although the wind was gusty every day. The new venue shined and the fishing was the star.
Oktoberfisch moved from Junction to Fredericksburg and the Edgewater Springs Resort on the Pedernales River. The new facility is fantastic and will be even better once completed. The location on the Pedernales is beautiful and there was excellent fishing on site. Besides lots of sunfish there were Guadalupe bass and largemouth bass caught, but, the real star was the carp fishing. There were multiple carp landed some in excess of 8 pounds.
The turnout was greater than in 2019, which is impressive considering the effects of Covid-19, and the new venue can accommodate many, many more in the future.
Sunday morning the certified casting instructors did a 2 hour running comedy show with serious casting demonstration punctuated by good natured ribbing. Chris Johnson, Gary Davidson and Jim Bass provided most of the demonstration and all the ribbing.
Bottom line, despite the pandemic, the event exceeded expectations and the future of the event in Fredericksburg looks bright.
Reminder Oktoberfisch is this Week
Oktoberfisch kicks off this Friday, October 16, 2020. Come out and a make new and renew old friendships, learn from master casters, fly tiers and fisherman, fish, and enjoy the Edgewater Springs Resort in Fredericksburg, Texas. The weather forecast is excellent for this weekend. More information at https://www.fredericksburgflyfishers.com/oktoberfisch/.
Oktoberfisch Kayak Shuttle
Fishing will be on the Pedernales River. According to the Fredericksburg Fly Fishers, a kayak shuttle will run all day Saturday, October 17. Club members have been scouting and fishing the local waters each week, and will provide shuttle participants transportation to and from access points. This year’s shuttle service, with communication by cell phones is expected to be far better than years past.
TPWD Proposes New Regs for Brushy Creek
Living Waters Fly Fishing sent out a blast email in support of newly proposed regulations for Brushy Creek. According to the email, “If passed, the new regulations would put an end to extensive fish harvest through the use of cast nets, bow fishing, seine nets, trot lines, and bank lines along Brushy Creek from the Brushy Creek Lake dam to the Williamson County line! In other words, fishing would be limited to rod and line only.” Chris Johnson, owner of Living Waters, included a personal note in support.
You can personally add your support by voting for the new regs here. The public comment period ends on May 21.
State Parks Ordered To Close Effective April 7, 2020
TPWD announced that according to an order from Governor Abbott, all state parks will be closed at the close of business April 7, 2020 in order to maintain the safest environment for visitors, volunteers and staff. No date for reopening is in the TPWD announcement. A link to the TPWD announcement is attached. https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/TXPWD/bulletins/28548e1